From The Publisher December 1996 Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays T'were the days before Christmas and all through the land, every creature was stirring and playing the band. The land was all painted from dew drop to snow, but some of us knew what was laying below . . . The sprinklers, the soil were certainly there, but very few realized that others, with care, had made sure the children would play safe and sound, and everyone chancing on this piece of ground might prosper a little or be better off and certainly this was no reason to scoff. The question you find is not what you see but how this endeavor just happened to be . . . It didn't just jump off a fast moving train and it couldn't just happen right after a rain. . Oh Yes, yes this landscape was certainly strange, but then it feels friendly like out on the range. And while some of the children with football or shovel might give it a tussle and cause it some trouble . . . It is you . . . readers all, who caused it to be. Who took enough time, after planting the tree . . . To fill in the playground for soft bouncy feet, and give Mom and Dad a place for their seat. To worry about where the water would fall when they tore up the hillside to put in a mall. Who lets them build buildings and dwellings and such, while making sure Grandma is not troubled too much when she hustles and bustles all over the place preparing the feast that puts smiles on the face of the children. So know this, ye all you should sing and stand tall and be proud of the work that you've done. It is peace you've restored to the land and the horde and to everything under the sun. So let's get together and make this place better a place where the children have fun. It's the best time of year Oh Yes, Christmas is here God bless us . . . every one! See you in 1997 . . .